Seven Sins
by signifytheworld
Summary: They are nowhere near perfection. Sasuke/Hinata -Pride-
1. Envy

**Warnings: Takes place when (if) Sasuke returns to Konoha. Post-war.**

~OoooooO~

**Envy**

~OoooooO~

_Just because you had her first,_

_Doesn't mean you have her now._

~OoooooO~

"Hinata-chan!"

The purple-haired Hyuuga swerved around to see a bright-eyed boy catch up to her. Her lavender eyes widened slightly when she realized it was Naruto who had called her name, and she turned a light hue of pink before greeting him.

"N-naruto-kun," she bowed slightly.

He put a large hand on her shoulder and chuckled. "You're still the same- even after the war. Are you taking a walk?"

"Yes."

"Do you mind if I tag along?"

Hinata blushed and shook her head silently, playing with the threads of ends of her oversized jacket. Her mauve locks fell slightly and framed her pale face as she lowered her head to hide her pink cheeks.

Naruto smiled. "Great!" He laid his hands behind his head and turned his head to the sky. "I was going to go out for a walk anyways, since it's a really nice day today," he looked at her and grinned. "Then I saw you. It's much nicer to go on a walk with someone you know. Dattebayo!"

Hinata gazed at the cerulean-eyed boy as he watched the crows in the sky and smiled. She still held a small flame for the 22-year old, even though she let go of her unrequited love long ago. After all, it isn't easy to relinquish her adoration for the eccentric character**; **as long as she could remember, she harbored feelings for him.

Hinata smiled and nodded, responding to the blonde's energetic attitude and words with her own expressions. She was surprised by how well her words flowed around him. The shy woman was very well acquainted with her stuttering problem, as well as her fainting problem when he came too close to her. She giggled silently, remembering her tomato-red face and the butterflies that fluttered wildly in her stomach.

"Ne, Hinata-chan?"

She turned her undivided attention to him and cocked her head. "What is it?"

"Do you remember when you were really sickly? You know, before the war?"

Hinata giggled. "I wasn't really sick, Naruto-kun. I-I just had a crush on you," she blushed, averting her eyes from his face.

His eyes widened. "Even before the Chuunin exam?"

She nodded her head slowly.

"So when you're in love, you get sick? How come I didn't get sick when I liked Sakura-chan?"

"No, no. I was just a special case."

Naruto scratched his head. "Ok… so how do you feel-"

"Hinata."

They turned to see a dark-haired man leap from a tree and walk calmly towards them.

"Hey! It's teme!"

"Dobe."

Hinata smiled slightly at the playful banter between the two and bobbed her head lightly. "Good morning, Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke grunted in response and roughly grabbed her hand. He glanced at Naruto and glared as he pulled her along. The blonde glared back and stuck his tongue out before continuing along the path.

"Sasuke-kun? Where are we going?" She was bewildered by his actions, and a light blush decorated her features.

He didn't answer until they stumbled upon a small grassy clearing. "I thought you were going to train with me this morning?"

Hinata furrowed her eyebrows and bit her lip lightly. "I don't remember."

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "You promised when we ate at Ichiraku's last week. Remember? We ran into Naruto."

"Oh! I thought we were supposed to do that tomorrow," Hinata replied.

"…"

"Did you forget?"

"I don't forget," Sasuke scoffed.

Hinata giggled. "Okay, okay. Did you wanna train then?"

"We lost the best part of the day to train. Let's just do it tomorrow."

"Then what do you want to do?"

He shrugged. "Let's take a walk."

Hinata's eyes widened. "Wh-what?"

He stared at her pointedly. "I interrupted your walk earlier, so I'll walk with you."

"Why didn't you walk with me and Naruto-kun?"

"Hn."

Hinata's pale-red lips curved upwards. "Why'd you pull me away?" She teased lightly.

"Hn."

"Did you get jea-"

"Don't say it," Sasuke warned, glaring lightly at the giggling girl in front of him.

"Jeal-"

"No."

"Fine. I won't say it."

Silence.

"Jealou-"

Sasuke snorted and put a rough hand over her mouth. "I told you not to say it."

Hinata blushed fiercely and murmured into his hand. "Mmm! Mmm!"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "Why are you blushing?"

Hinata pried the large hand off her mouth slowly and glared softly at the onyx-haired man. "Wh-what was that f-for?"

"I told you not to say it, so I covered your mouth," he answered, crossing his arms.

"B-but…"

"Let's go, Hinata,"

"B-but Sasuke-kun," she said, her words fading as she quickly followed the stubborn man out of the woods.

She didn't see the faint smirk that adorned his pale face, nor the way his eyes smiled in victory. And although he'd never admit it, he liked the calm girl much more than he should have.

His dark eyes strayed to her slightly panting form, and he set his pale hand on her head. Hinata turned her gaze towards Sasuke and smiled brilliantly. Whether he wanted to or not, a light hue of pink brushed his cheeks and he turned his head away.

~OoooooO~

_Just because you had her first,_

_Doesn't mean you have her now._

~OoooooO~

**Thanks for reading "Seven Sins!" This will be a collection of one-shots using the seven deadly sins to demonstrate their relationship (aww.). (:**

**I'm relatively new to this pair. I used to love Naruto/Hinata (and I still kind of do), but I find Sasuke and Hinata have so much… chemistry. ****And well, I _love_ chemistry. XD**

**Anyhoo, I know this is a crack pairing, and has virtually no chance of happening. (And neither is Sasuke's coming home. DX) But still, I'd like to believe it is still possible.**

**Please review! I'd appreciate your thoughts and criticism!**


	2. Pride

**Warnings: Takes place during Fourth Shinobi War.**

~OoooooO~

**Pride**

~OoooooO~

_Even she has her pride._

~OoooooO~

They always praise the prodigies; Sasuke and Neji were held high on a pedestal where all can look and none can touch. They praise the intelligent; for Shikamaru and Sakura, logic beats impulsiveness by a long shot. They praise the efficient; Lee and Ten-Ten hit their targets with astounding precision. They praise the collaboration; Chouji and Ino make a team that will sneak quietly and hit hard. They praise the deadly; Shino and Kiba will kill without hesitation. They praise the hero; Naruto's limitless strength can beat any opponent supposedly stronger than he. But when they talk about the Hyuuga heiress, they don't really know what to say.

She's weak, and they don't say it, but unspoken rumors say there is absolutely no way she can ever aspire to become a great ninja like Tsunade-sama or Sakura-san. Rumors say her blows are too weak, not potent enough to paralyze her opponent, much less kill. Rumors say she has a low tolerance for blood, too much and she'll start to shake convulsively. Rumors say she is too soft, better suited to become a mother of four than partake in a ninja squad of four. Rumors say she is too easily flattered, compliments flying past her ears yet her face turns redder and redder by the second. Rumors say everything about her screams naïve, feeble, pathetic.

But rumors are rumors and while they have a tad bit of truth in them, they are never entirely true. Her closest friends see her differently; they know she's gotten stronger and if she's still seen as weak, they know better. She's still weaker than the rest of her team, but mentally, she's stronger than all of them. Years of emotional abuse have built her up despite her meek attitude. When it comes down to it, Hinata will be stronger even though her tremulous hands can't hold a kunai properly and she's clutching frantically onto consciousness. Her unwavering spirit pushes her physical body past its limits and the people around her to become better than ever. She has an unstoppable soul.

That's one thing Uchiha Sasuke doesn't understand- how a girl like Hyuuga Hinata can be so weak yet so strong. He's seen her fight; he's seen her trip over a branch and lose her advantage over her opponent. He's seen her lose against her lowly cousin. He's seen her do everything but become strong. He hates weak things like her.

Yet the people he defeats all tell him to watch out for the heiress Hyuuga. It's not the father; it's not even the cousin, but the _heiress_. How can a girl like Hyuuga Hinata be so weak, yet so strong?

She stands before him, her indigo tresses laden with a dirty brown and her milky skin tainted with cuts and dirt. Short breaths escape her lips briefly, and her chakra levels are way lower than they should be. She has no energy left to battle another person, much less the S-class missing nin, Uchiha Sasuke.

She watches the man Naruto-kun has been so bent on reaching and doesn't know what to do. Uchiha Sasuke is a man wanted dead in four of the five major hidden villages, yet the man she loves wants to save him. She pulls out a kunai and anchors herself to the ground before she calls to him.

"U-Uchiha-san."

"Hyuuga."

"How are y-you?"

He furrows his eyebrows and looks pointedly at her. "I'm not here for small talk."

He reaches in his pouch and throws a series of kunai at Hinata. She clashes her own weapon against his projectiles and she thrusts her own kunai at him.

"Byakugan!"

"Sharingan!"

Hinata rushes towards him and engages him in a taijutsu spar. She continuously looks for an opening in his chest, but he constantly keeps himself guarded while aiming well-timed kicks at her. A few minutes in, and it is painfully evident Hinata will emerge the loser. She loses her ground and the bruising blows from the Uchiha are starting to wear her down. Her arms become weaker and weaker before she completely flies into a tree and hits her back against its trunk.

Picking herself up, she feels old wounds reopening and grimaces just enough that her opponents sees. She shakes it off, regards it as nothing, and pulls out another kunai, bracing herself for a battle she's bound to lose.

She uses all the tools in her arsenal until they're gone, blocks all his attacks until her arms and legs are already turning black and blue, stands up until her legs shake. It's a glaringly one-sided battle, but Hinata can't bring herself to lose.

It's much more than anyone makes it out to be. She may not be as clever, as strong, as efficient, as heroic as the others, but she has a resolve that stays no matter what. She cannot lose because she simply _can't_.

"Why don't you give up, Hyuuga?" He asks as he parries one strike to another. He moves like a snake, always eluding her grasp. Hinata's palm doesn't hit a chakra spot in his body once, and she starts to make moves at every opening she sees.

"Now you're just making desperate moves," he mutters under his breath. She ignores him and concentrates the last of her chakra to her fists.

"Gentle Step: Twin Lion Fists!"

All of a sudden, blue chakra envelops her hands and she drives a left hook to Sasuke's jaw. For once, the Uchiha is the one left to pick himself up and crouches into a defensive mode. He wipes the blood from his mouth, pulls his sword out, and holds it out steadily in front of him. Silence overtakes the forest.

"Why do you try, Hyuuga?"

She is calm. She is calculating. She doesn't answer him at first because all she can do is see. She watches the Uchiha's every little movement- from the slight wave of his ebony locks to the sidestep he takes to gain as much advantage over her as he can. Leaping towards him, she throws a punch with enough strength to rival Sakura's and Sasuke dodges, moving under her to slit her back. Hinata winces, but she bites her lip hard and continues to use the flow of chakra while she still can.

Slowly, fresh wounds start to form over old ones and she's still not getting anywhere. She hasn't been able to hit Sasuke since she first initiated her technique. Twisting her body just slightly as she runs towards Sasuke, she escapes the impaling on Sasuke's sword.

Or at least she thinks she does.

Abruptly, the scenery fades into inky-black crows and she realizes she's been caught in a genjutsu. Hinata coughs and blood spurts from her cherry-pink lips. "W-when?"

"After the Twin Lion Fists."

She nods slightly. "It w-was while you were standing up, wasn't it?"

He nods, pulling his sword from her stomach roughly and watches as she falls to the ground.

Hinata gets up to her knees and bends over as more blood forces its way up her throat. Sasuke glares at her pitiful state and he whips the blood off his katana before sheathing it.

"Why do you try, Hyuuga?"

Sasuke still doesn't understand how she is strong. She revealed her emotions too easily. She could only land a single hit on him. She, a Hyuuga heiress, was caught in a genjutsu.

His eyes gaze at Hinata as she slowly gets back up on her feet and clutches at her stomach painfully. He can tell she is bordering unconsciousness, and the veins in her Byakugan are becoming less prominent. She slips back into her gentle fist stance and he sighs. He doesn't know why he's letting her live; it's a waste of time and he wants to get to Kabuto as quickly as he can.

He also squats into a defensive position and waits for her move. Tension lingers in the air.

She runs towards him, her movements definitely hindered by the hole in her stomach. The Hyuuga continues to shove against him, her moves slowly becoming more distinct to him. He can see her moves, but for some reason, her thrusts are more forceful.

"Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm!"

Before he knows it, an insistent force pushes at his stomach and he flies backwards until he skids in the dirt. Sasuke doesn't know how his Sharingan didn't see it- not when the Hyuuga's motions were becoming so obvious. He looks up just in time to see the petite structure plummet to the ground; she doesn't even attempt to hide her groans anymore.

Sasuke finally gets why they say to watch out for the Hyuuga heiress now. It's because she's persistent as hell. Sasuke gets up and dusts the dirt off his pants and walks over to the Hyuuga, exposing his katana once more.

He watches as she tries pitifully to lift herself up. Hinata falls to the ground once more with an _oomph_.

"Stay down," he orders, his icy edge freezing her in her spot. "I'll repeat this one last time. Why do you try, Hyuuga?"

She hesitates before she answers. She knows it's the end for her, and thinks that maybe she won't answer just to spite him.

Then again, she lost. She does not deserve to ignore questions. She supports herself on one arm, and thinks about it.

Why did she try?

Naruto-kun. Neji-niisan. Her team. Kurenai-sensei. The Hyuugas. Konoha. Her friends. Her ninja way. Her father. Herself. The gossipers. Her sister. Her mother.

She settles on an answer, and smiles grandly up at the last Uchiha. Blood drips down from her forehead and she closes one eye because it hurts too much to see with both. "I-I think y-you'll understand, Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke is starting to lose his patience. "What will I understand?"

"Pride," she says finally. "I try because of my pride. My pride as a Konoha ninja, my pride as the Hyuuga heiress, my pride in myself."

He only stares at her blankly.

"You understand, Sasuke-kun, right?" She whispers hoarsely. She knows it's her time and he nods his head slowly, not quite believing what the Hyuuga was asking of him.

"So what are you waiting for?" She asks, closing her eyes gently. She's trying to ease the pain that clutches at her heart and attempts to ignore her life flashing before her eyes. Because death means no team, no Konoha, no Naruto-kun. She braces herself for the second impaling of his katana.

He hears a faint brush of the leaves and realizes reinforcements will come soon. He watches the Hyuuga prepare her mind for her death, and despite the situation, is slightly amused. His never-ending glare softens just a bit before he shakes his head.

It's an impulse, and Sasuke doesn't know why he does it, but he bends down, clutches her withering mauve tresses in his large hand, and kisses her lightly on the forehead. He's not sure what he's trying to convey because he knows they're enemies.

If she was surprised, she didn't show it. Her eyelids are still shut prettily, and he whispers in her ear. "Live. Let your pride carry you on."

He sheathes his katana and walks away as her team barely arrives. He hears their chatter, their worries smother Hinata and her soft weeping. One day, one day, they'll meet again.

Her words echo in his ears.

_Pride. I try because of my pride._

~OoooooO~

_Even she has her pride._

~OoooooO~

**So. This is infinitely more depressing than the first sin I did. Obvi. I was actually going to have Hinata die, but I figured- that's not really Sasuke/Hinata-like. Or at least the way I did it didn't seem right.**

**Thanks for waiting for so long. I've been gone for a while because of personal reasons, and I thank who have reviewed and continue to review. I hope you enjoyed it despite the angst. (icantlivewithoutmyangst.)**


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